Walter raises S. Africa which is also an interesting question vis-a-vis
US nuclear objectives. S. Africa, under the National Party gov't had a
experimented with nuclear weapons. When the ANC came to power, they
ended the program, or, at least as far as we know, there are not more
military-nuclear programs.
However, they have 2 reactors that supply about 2,000 MWs of power
provided by the French state run nuclear industry 2 decades ago and, on
their own, have developed the advance Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR).
The State Energy ministry (ANC) suggests the gov't is planning for an
additional 40,000 MWs over the next 25 years (not much less than the US
plans for, in fact, but potential growth is greater there than in the
US). Out of that, 20,000 MWs, or 1/2 the expected increase, will be
nuclear, and of those 20,000, 4-8,000 MWs will be from their indigenous
PBMR.
What is of interest, to me, is that S. Africa has NOT looked toward the
US partnership agreements like the Indian gov't has (and whose
opposition to the deal seems more based on national sovereignty issues
than "nuclear power" issues). The ANC gov't wishes....just like
Iran(!)...to have total control over their fuel cycle and that this is
the biggest issue in their opposition to the US organized and very fake
Nuclear Suppliers Group. S. Africa wishes to exploit their own massive
uranium reserves and use it in their own reactors. How dare they! This
seems to offend the US somehow. They do not want to rely on this "NSG"
and be beholden to US technology vetoes.
To my knowledge the S. A. Communist Party has only raised an eye-brow or
two at this planned huge increase in S. African nuclear energy
capability...but not outright opposition unless I'm missing something.
David